Former MP Katie Wallis outside court (Image: John Myers)
A transgender former Conservative MP has been handed a community order for harassment. Katie Wallis, 41, of Butetown, Cardiff, became the first openly transgender MP in the House of Commons in 2022 while the MP for Bridgend, south Wales. Cardiff Magistrates’ Court was told the former politician, previously known as Jamie Wallis, sent messages accusing Rebecca Wallis – now Lovell – of being “mean”.
Using obscenities in communications, Wallis demanded to know about his ex-wife’s new partner and that £350,000 be transferred within 15 minutes. In total, the ex-MP sent four messages and one voice note, expressing the hope that she and her father “never have a happy moment again”.
The couple split in 2020, with the divorce finalised in 2024.
In a victim impact statement, which was read to the court, Ms Lovell said: “This is the hardest thing I have written, for so long I have had to fight against the tide of Jamie’s behaviour, publicly and privately.
She added: “The woman I used to be is destroyed. I will never understand what I have done to deserve the hurt I have endured.”
Ms Lovell described the last six months as “utterly devastating” and said she was living her life as an “overstimulated adult constantly in fight or flight”.
She said she feared Wallis turning up at her home, leading her to have CCTV installed.
Wallis, who was wearing a black dress, looked down as the statement was read to the court.
Narita Bahra, mitigating, said Wallis uses female pronouns, referring to Jamie as a “dead name”.
She argued it was “disappointing” the case had come to court, criticising South Wales Police and the Crown Prosecution Service for not dealing with the issue outside the court.
Ms Bahra argued it was “unequivocal” that Wallis had been suffering from mental health difficulties at the time of the offending, partly brought on by the transition to being a female.
She also said Wallis was suffering from PTSD, a depressive disorder and an adjustment disorder.
Ms Bahra said Wallis was remorseful and did not seek to excuse her actions.
Wallis asked for help in a final message to Ms Lovell, claiming to be experiencing pain in the temples.
Wallis was found by police and sectioned under the Mental Health Act before being arrested and later charged.
District Judge Rhys Williams handed Wallis a 12-month community order to be carried out over 12 days and a fine worth £1,264.
He also imposed a restraining order for 12 months to prevent Wallis from contacting Ms Lovell.
Wallis, who pleaded guilty to leaving the messages at a hearing in June, initially denied the charges, but changed plea when other allegations were removed from the charge.
Rachel Reeves accused of planning wealth tax raid on middle-class workers to fix economy
Rachel Reeves has been accused of wanting to “pick the pockets” of middle-class workers after refusing to rule out a punishing wealth tax raid. Senior Conservatives warned that the under-pressure Chancellor is planning to “tax the living daylights” out of millions of Britons to help clear up her economic mess.
Party leader Kemi Badenoch said Labour are plotting to raise taxes to “pay for their mistakes” while shadow chancellor Mel Stride said “grafters” will be clobbered. Their stark warning comes after ministers hinted that Ms Reeves is considering wealth taxes in her autumn Budget to fill a fiscal hole worth tens of billions.
Kemi Badenoch (Image: Getty)
Mel Stride (Image: Getty)
Ms Reeves refused to rule it out during a broadcast interview, telling broadcasters: “We haven’t even set the date for the budget yet, so please forgive me if I’m not going to speculate about what might happen at an event that we haven’t even decided a date on yet.
But she said promises not to increase income tax, national insurance and value added tax (VAT) remained in place, along with her “non-negotiable” fiscal rules.
Ms Reeves added: “Interest rates have come down four times in the last year under this Labour Government because of the stability that we’ve managed to return to the economy, which is underpinned by those fiscal rules, which have enabled the Bank of England to cut interest rates.”
Ms Reeves remarks come as she attempts to get her floundering Chancellorship back on track in a major speech today in which she will set out a vision to turbocharge Britain’s financial services industry.
The Chancellor will tell City of London grandees in her Mansion House address that she will not risk the UK’s economic “stability”, in spite of pressure from some Labour MPs for higher public spending and looser fiscal rules.
After a damaging few weeks for Ms Reeves in which she was forced to abandon £6.25billion of welfare savings by rebellious Labour MPs and u-turn on her winter fuel payment disaster, the Chancellor will insist she has a grip on the economy.
But writing in the Daily Express, Mr Stride warns of the perilous dangers of targeting middle-earners.
In a brutal assessment he says Ms Reeves’ “poorly equipped” to run the economy and drive growth.
“The only growth she seems capable of delivering is in your bills, your taxes and government borrowing,” he warns.
He adds that Labour is plotting to target “grafters” by “clobbering aspirational, middle classes with their next inevitable tax raid” which is the “worst thing” they could do to drive growth.
Mrs Badenoch said: “Labour are going to raise your taxes, again, to pay for their mistakes.
“Britain doesn’t need more taxes. People are taxed too high already.
“It needs a government committed to bringing down spending so we live within our means. Only the Conservative Party believes this.”
Ms Reeves claims to have brought “stability” to the economy, highlighted by the fact that interest rates have come down four times in the last year.
Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has suggested there could be larger cuts if the jobs market shows signs of weakness, pointing to the impact of Ms Reeves’ decision to hike employers’ national insurance contributions (NICs).
In an interview with The Times, the governor said the British economy was growing behind its potential.
Ms Reeves will use this evening’s (Tue) speech to unveil plans to help first-time buyers by announcing that mortgages will be available at more than 4.5 times a buyer’s income.
This will create up to 36,000 additional mortgages for first-time buyers over the first year, the Government said.
Britain’s biggest building society – Nationwide – announced last week that it is aiming to increase its high loan-to-income lending limit.
From Wednesday, eligible first-time buyers can apply for Nationwide’s Helping Hand mortgage with a £30,000 salary, down from £35,000, and joint applicants with a £50,000 combined salary – down from £55,000.
It is estimated this will support an additional 10,000 first-time buyers each year.
The changes will sit alongside the creation of a permanent mortgage guarantee scheme, delivering on a manifesto commitment, and a review of Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) lending rules that could allow prospective buyers’ records of paying rent on time to be used to show they can afford mortgage repayments.
The Chancellor is expected to say: “I have placed financial services at the heart of the Government’s growth mission.
“Recognising that Britain cannot succeed and meet its growth ambitions without a financial services sector that is fighting fit and thriving.
“And I have been clear on the benefits that that will drive.
“With a ripple effect that will drive investment in all sectors of our economy and put pounds in the pockets of working people.”
